Category Archives: Letters

1/3, Model Town,

Lahore.

March 8, 1994

The Headmaster, Dear sir,

My son, Khalid Ali, is returning to school today after nearly a fornight’s absence. A few days ago he was vaccinated and soon developed a very painful arm. In the circumstances, the only advisable thing was to keep his indoors. In the meantime he developed some fever also. He is much better new. Though I am afraid he might have missed much on account of his absence, yet I believe he will do what he can to make up for the lost time.

Yours faithfully.

7/8 Model Town,

Lahore.

March 13, 1994.

To

The Headmaster,

Dear Sir,

Would you kindly excuse M.A.Khan, Class VII, for not doing the home work that he should done last night? Unfortunately my son came home in the evening with a severe headache and I thought if necessary for him to go to bed. Thus, he was unable to do his home work.

Yours faithfully.

6/13, Rehamn Lane,

Lahore.

M/s Mueen News Agency,

Lahore.

Dear Sirs,

As we shall be away from Lahore on a holiday for a short time please stop the delivery of all morning papers after March 20. We will require the papers after April 20.

Yours faithfully.

8/12 Model Town,

Lahore.

M/s Pakistan Times,

Lahore.

Dear Sirs,

I have to complain against late delivery of your ape to me in the morning. The hawker concerned always regrets his inability to be in time, they says that sale procedure is cumbersome at the office counter stage and therefore the Management itself is to blame. Will you, please look into it? Failing to get a satisfactory reply, I am afraid, I will have to switch over to some other Daily.

Yours faithfully.

Dear Sir,

Around 10 a.m. on September 16, when I go off a bus opposite the G.P.O, a middle aged respectable Sindhi, clad in simple white4 clothes, cheerfully approached me, shook hands and then, warmly pressing my right hand with both his hands closed his eyes for a few seconds and enquired of me, Achha Hae! (how do you do)? I was naturally somewhat surprised by this affectionate treatment form a stranger. I had not experienced anything like this during my three day’s stay in Karachi. On inquiry, he told me hat his son was fighting on the Kashmir front; he wished “victorious joy” for one, and all the jawans fighting for the motherland. We should indeed thank India for having served us in many ways through her invasion, one of which is that crude and selfish slogans like Sind for Sindhi and Punjab for Punjabi-speaking have suddenly vanished. “Pakistan for Pakistanis” is our only slogan now. It is high time o give, once again, a practical shape to the noble words uttered in the days of our patriotic leaders: “Who lives if Pakistan dies; who dies if Pakistan lives?”

Yours faithfully.

Dear Sir,

In modern time bureaucracy has acquired many forms. When any responsive or say responsible, Government finds that the people can’t do something well, it steps in and does it worse. Anyway it does it, that’s a the chief thing. A Brooklyn citizen the other day voiced and odd kind of protest against an obviously responsive local authority. It seems New York city recently appropriated $675.000 for 5000 trees, or about $135 at tree: and the citizen wailed: “I had a tree planted for & 35 in front of my house. Why does it cost the city $100 more? The poor Ignormus does not know the was of a bureaucrat, obviously: else the would have instantly understood a tree costs much more when bought or acquired by a government authority than when planted by a private individual. The prosscess is by no means simple. Estimates have to be called for. Tenders have to be invited, decisions on them taken, paper work and files field: and all the time the bills keep going up. Time as everyone knows, is a kind of money and since every official uses plenty of it the final bill will have little resemblance to the estimate. This is far from being unusual. Local authories sometimes build owner fiats in this country which cost twice as much as when others try their hand at it. Some time back some nine tons of an item of naval stores were bought at Rs.26.320 a ton: later it was found the market price was Rs.720 a ton. A timber seasoning kiln was built once at a cost of Rs.296.000: it took seven years to build, and then it was abandoned. A donkey was recently in the news as having been retained at a cost of Rs.60,000. These things happen a tree sprouts and grows, puts forth many leaves and branches out in various directions. One has to pay for it all. Incidentally these are the fruits of bureaucracy!

Yours faithfully.